Colour Of The Truth (HK 2003)

Colour Of The Truth was directed by Wong Jing and was undoubtably inspired by the then-current Infernal Affairs trilogy however don't let that put you off. Colour Of The Truth is an excellent crime drama with a solid plot, good acting, solid action and even includes Gillian Chung from Twins wielding a gun. Now for some guys that is a kind of fantasy, i'm sure i'm not alone with that.

Anthony Wong stars as a senior police officer who, in the early 1990s, was involved in a double shooting where a hoodlum and a fellow police officer were both shot. Now ten years later the sons of the two people Wong shot are fully grown up adults and have followed their father's trades : one a gangster boss (Jordan Chan) and the other a cop (Raymond Wong) and they both want revenge.

Mixed up in this is a crime sub-plot involving Patrick Tse which at the start seems unconnected to the main revenge plot but as the film progresses the plots become more and more intertwined. What marks this film above "competant" and into the "good" category is the subtleness. Raymond hates Anthony Wong but when he gets to know him he finds the man is not quite the monster he was bought up to believe he was.

The final showdown is exciting and has plenty of twists though is probably overshadowed by some of the action set-pieces that take place earlier on. The film isn't perfect but happily includes none of Wong Jing's usual silliness or racism. Gillian seems just in place to provide some eye candy (not that there is anything wrong with that) and Chapman To seems just in place to provide some annoyance.

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